I recently returned from the bi-annual Professional Materials (ProMat) trade show at Chicago’s McCormick Center, and it was quickly evident that many companies have lost sight of the 5 rules of B2B trade show process.

I like looking at logos. The good and the not so good, and trying to discern how they were conceived, the strategic thought process that went into developing the strategy, and then into the design itself.

But a few months ago I read in Brandweek the convoluted psychobabble about the genesis of the we/me logo for The Alliance for Climate Protection and was left with the feeling that the people who contributed to the article have a relationship with mirrors that is unhealthy.

I have never accused myself of, nor misled myself about, being in tune with the strategic rationale of some marketers because I wasn't in those meetings, but I simply can’t explain the new campaign for the NFL Players Association and the most recent bind-in in this week’s Brandweek.

Yes, I understand that the NFLPA is trying to re-position itself away from being the protectors of the rights of the commonly perceived overpaid, unsophisticated and off-the-field, one step away from jail NFL player.

If, on average, only 30% of companies bought or invested in by private equity firms achieve the success the PE company envisioned when the investment was made, one has to wonder why those firms spend little or no time and effort trying to increase the sales of their new purchase through better marketing strategies.

Buying or investing in a range of strategically similar companies, and then combining IT and back office operations, is a common practice for private equity firms to reduce overall costs of ownership and wring out more cash flow among all properties.

Introducing large or "important" potential same-sector customers to those PE-owned companies by leveraging relationships is another. Of course, there are many more that go along with those, but the collective goal is to increase the value of that company and either sell it off later or take it public.

Every four years, the country is over-run with political ads from presidential hopefuls, and for the most part, they are aggressive, in-your-face and pushing the limits of the truth....all supposedly to make a point about the other candidate's inability to govern and make decisions that are in our collective best interests.

In terms of marketing and sales techniques, the vast majority of US-based industrial manufacturers continue to live in the past. And so do their agencies or in-house departments.

Sell products on features and benefits. Show big pictures of the products in use. Hammer home reliability, durability, engineering, quality, productivity and cost efficiencies. And then repeat with the next, new and improved! product.